Electric make-and-break device



J. H. LEHMAN. ELECTRIC MAKE AND BREAK DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 6.1917- 1',311,902, PatentedAug. 5,1919.

2 SHEETSSHEET L 6 5 lzizmn -J. H. LEHMAN.

ELECTRIC MAKE AND BREAK DEVICE. APPLICATION FILED NOV. 6. 1911.

1,31 1,902. Patented Aug. 5,1919.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2- vwemtoz JOSEPH H. LEHMAN, 0F HASBROUCK HEIGHTS, NEW J ERSEY.

ELECTRIC MAKE-AND-BREAK DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 5, 1919.

.lipplication filed November 6, 1917. Serial No. 200,504.

devices for electric current and although it may be utilized for controlling the current flow in various different forms of apparatus, it is particularly adapted for use a part of the timer in an ignition system for internal combustion engines.

The invention relates to that type in which two relatively movable contact members are intermittently brought together and separated as the result of the rotation of a rotary member driven by the engine at a speed bearing a predetermined relationship to the speed of the engine. I

In the simplest form of make-and-break devices of this character, the length of time, during which the contact members are in engagement "with each other. and during which time the current may flow, varies with the speed of the engine and there is a waste of current when the engine is running at slow speed. Devices have been designed having for their object to insure a uniform length of time of engagement by the contacts and current flow, irrespective of 'ar1- ations in the speed of the engine. The length of time, during which the contacts are together prior to their separation and the spark formation, is necessarily a very small fraction of a second in a fast running engine. The character of the spark formed upon the breaking of the contacts is dependent, at least in part, upon the strength of the current flowing from one contact to the other prior to the break.

The main objects of my invention are to secure an increased flow of current and a more effective spark when the engine is running at high speed, and to prevent the waste of current. In order to secure these objects, I provide my improved and novel mechanism which is sodesigned that the length of time, during which the con-.

7 tacts are in engagement, increases as the speed of the engine increases and the circuit is always broken when the device is not in operation.

As an important feature of my improved construction, I employ an oscillatory member having considerable mass for moving the movable contact to circuit closing position and, dueto its mass and inertia, holding it there for a time interval (measured in fractions of a second) varying with the force imparted to said member. Operating mechanism is provided whereby, as the engine speed increases, it increases the force with which the oscillatory member is moved or thrown and correspondingly increases the extent of the movement. The greater the extent of the movement, the greater will be the time during which the contacts are in engagement and therefore an increase in the speed of the engine gives an increased time of contact and an increased current flow, and the spark following the separation of the contacts will be highly effective at higher speeds.

Increasing the duration of closed contact in the primary circuit at increasing engine speed permits a proper, current flow to the coil. suflicient current to fully excite the secondary winding, thus giving a greater second- This in turn allowsthe primary coil ary discharge at high speed which is not the I -ase in present accepted designs of circuit breakers.

In my p eferred construction I permit of this varying force and extent of movement of the oscillatory weight member by mounting it for movement in either direction from rest in. which position it is normally held by a pair of resilient members. An engine driven rotary member intermittently swings the weight against one resilient member with a force increasing with engine speed, and thereafter said resilient member causes the weight to rebound against the other resilient member. This last mentioned resilient member has lost motion connections'with the movable contact and normally holds the latter in open position, but the weight in rebounding past normal moves with this resilient member to'close the circuit and hold .it closed for a time interval, depending on the force and'extent of the rebound, which in turn depends on the speed and force of the first swing. After the rebound it comes back to normal or; rest position ready for the next swing. It is of course understood that the frequency of these swinging movements is properly timed and determined in accordanee with the engine speed, the number of cylinders or circuit closings per revolution, etc.

l\-Iy invention may assume various different forms and, in an ignition system, may beused alone as a timer or as a part of a combined timer and distributer.

In the accompanying drawings, I have illustrated certain forms which my invention may assume. In these drawings, in which similar referencecharacters indicate Corresponding parts in the several views,

Figure 1 is a plan view of one form, the parts being shown in normal position with the circuit broken;

Fig. lug. 1;

Figs. 3 and 4 are views simllar to a portion of Fig. 1, but on a somewhat larger scale,

2 is a section on the line '2--2 of Fig. 3 showing the parts in position after a movement of the oscillatory member in one direction and Fig. at showing them withthe oscillatory member at, or approaching, the end of the' rebound iovement;

Fig. 5 shows a cushioning spring for the s p;

Figs. 6 and 7 are forms;

Fig. 8 is a diagram showing the current increase with increases in speed; and

' Fig. 9 is a plan view of a further form.

In the specific construction illustrated in Figs. 1 to 5 inclusive, I employ a body part 10 which may be supported and inclosed in any suitable manner, forming-n0 portion of my invention. and may be a part of a combined timer and di'stributer. This body part may be of any suitable material, although it is preferably of some form of electric insulation. It is shown having a shaft 11 axtending therethrough and journaled in a bearing sleeve 12. It is understood that in an ignition system for four-cycle internal combustion engines, this shaft would be driven by the engine through suitable twoto-one gearing.

, The uppenpnd of the shaft is shown as having an extension 13 which also forms no portion of my invention but which may carry the brush of a distributer. Rigidly secured to the shaft, adjacent to the upper surface of the body 10, is a rotary member 14. This rotary member has a series of cams, teeth, projections, or other surface irregularities 15, for acting upon and causing the movement of the oscillatory member as hereinafter described. The number of these teeth or cams 15 will vary with the number of sparks desired during each complete rotation of the shaft. lVith the shaft geared two to one in a six cylinder engine, there plan views of other j The. contact 18 is carried by a jjects. This serves to protect the rotary memer and retain the lubricating ()ll.

, Thetwo contacts which are adapted to be brought into engagementavith each other, to perrnit' the flow of the current and to be "separated to cause sudden brealt or interruptionin the current flow, are shown at 17 and 18. The contact 17 is shown as bein secured to or as constituting the end of an adjustable screw 19-carried by a post 20 and normally held against rotation by a suitable lock nut. The post has a base carrying a wife; terminal 21 to which may be secured one wire of the primary circuit. y,

lcafspring 22,- one end of which is free, while the opposite end is secured to a post 23. The latter, has a base carrying a wire terminal2l to which the other wire of the primary circuit secured. I have shown two wires leading through the casing to these two terminals, but the connections may be made in any other suitable manner. -The leaf spring 22 adjacent to its point of support is connected to a second leaf 25, which latter has a hooked end 26 limiting'the extent to which the free ends of the two leaves may be separated. W'ith the parts in normal position, the contacts are separated as shown in Fig. 1'. I

As an important feature of my invention,

. I provide an oscillatory member 27 mounted on a pivot 28 and having a. part in the path of the projecting portions of the' rotary member 1 1. Adjacent to this oscillator 1 member and in its path of movement is a resilient stop 29 so positioned that the oscillatory member 27 normally engages both with the resilient stop and with the adjacent side of the leaf 25 as shown in Fig. 1. The resilient stop may be varied in details of construction but is shown as a plunger ITl()l'1tQ( to reciprocate in a bearing block 30 rigidly secured to the body 10. 'lVithin the bearing block is a coil spring 251 normally moving the stop to its limiting position toward the member 27 and this position may be varied by the adjustment of a nut 32 on the rear projecting end of the stop 29. Between this nut and the adjacent side of the bearing block, I preferably employ a small dished spring 33 to cushion the movement of the stop and prevent the noise which would otherwise result from the sudden impact of one part against the other. It will be noted that the oscillatory member 27 not directly connected to any spring or other resilient part and is free fpr . osci l l ator float between the stop 29. and the leaf 25. t preferably is of rigid construction and of metal or any othcrsuitable n'iatcrial it the desired mass and momentum. is sl as being provided with a cushioning tip 3% fordireot engagement with the leaf 25 to reduce the noise and take up the wear.

It will be noted that the oscillatory men1 bcr extends substantially in a radial posi tion and there is but slight over-lap'oif the teeth on the end of said member. The member, when in normai position, is not 'mat-erially influenced by either oi'f the resilient stops or 29. in. case the enginobaclrfires, or it for any other reason the rotary member 1 1 is turned in a counter-clockwise direction, that is, opposite to the normal direction of rotation. the teeth will engage with the inclined surface of the end of the ember and move it slightly in direction from normal. position t 25, until the tooth slips past the end of the member 27. it will thus be noted that no damage wilifbc done to the device by a reverse rotation of the shaft.

in the operation of my improved device, member 1%" is turned clockwise as indicated by thearrovis in Fin: 3 and 4 and its successive projections it) engage with the pposi against he the tip of the member 2? and swing the latter against one resistance oi the stop 2} in Fig. 1, the parts are shown in the position which they occupy at the instant one of they teeth 15 comes into engagunent with the end of the oscillatory member. A further movement of the rotary men'iber carries the oscillatory member at least to the position shown in Fig. 3 and, at high speed, the oscillatory member will be thrown free. oi the teeth 15 and against increasing resistance of the stop 29 rather than merely slipping over the end of the tooth. lihen the member is released by the passage of the toothor when its momentum has been overcome by the resilient stop 29, the latter EIVQS 1t such a ihrust or impetus that it ,rcbounds or swings pastits normal position toward,

to, or beyond, the position shown in Fig. 4. At the instant it reac ies its normal position during the return movement it engages with the leaf and carries boththis leaf, the leaf spring 22 and the contact 1% with it until the contact 18 engages with the contact 1? to close the circuit. '1 he greater the force with which the member 27 is thrown from the position shown in Fig. 1 to, or beyond. the position shown in Fig. 3, the greater will be the force of the return or rebound movement and the greater will be the distance through which the member 27 will travel beyond its normal position.

lnnnediately after passing its normal po sition on the rebounm the circuit is closed and ii" there but a slight rebound, the cir cuit will be instantly broken as the member 27 is stopped by the resistance of the leaf 25. if the member 27 be thrown with great violence and rebounds with equal violence, it will swing considerably past the position shown in Fig. l and the contacts 17 and 18 will remain in engagement for a correspondingly QL'ClltQl" length of time due to the width of the hook end 26 which forms lost motion connections between the leaf and the contact 18. The time of the contact varies with the distance through which the member 27 travels during the rebound past normal position. t will be noted that after the member :27 has been stopped at the end of the rebound and returns to normal position, the hooked end 26 will positively insure the separation of the contacts.

By means of my improved construction, I am. able to secure a length of contact and a current flow which increases with increased engine speeds and I am therefore able to secure uniform sparks at high and low speeds.

Merely to indicate the results actually obtained with a device constructed in accordance with my invention and as compared to the results obtained in the ordinary construction, I have shown two plotted curves in Fig. 8. The vertical lines represent successive hundreds of revolutions from no speed up to 1700 revolutions per minute end the horizontal lines represent ampere flow. The curve A-B was plotted from the actual performance of an ordinary timer and shows a substantially uniform current liow up to about 300 revolutions per m nute and theimttter a. continual decrease in current flow with increase in speed of rotation of the engine. The curve C I) shows the results obtained by the use of my improved construction and indicates a continual increase in current liow from the starting of the engine up to the highest speed.

it will of course be evident that I do not wish to be limited to the specific construction illustrated in llins. 1 to 5 inclusive. A difi'crent form and in fact one which is preferred in many const-ructhms is shown in Fig. (3. This dilicrs from the construction. shown in Fig. l primarilyin that the vibrator or hammer member 2? has a resilient portion 31 constituting a spring and servbe the same as that hereinbefore described but l have shown the rotary member H with only four projections adapting it for a four or eight cycle engine inst-cad of six projections as in the form shown in Sheet One.

tatable'member carries relatively movable contacts 17 and 18, a vibratory hammer member 27 a stop 29, and other parts going to form a complete make-and-break device, The parts are so-positioned that as the member 40 is rotated, it carries the vibratory member 27 bodily around the axis of the shaft and brings it into engagement with the projections 15 in succession. The make-- and-break may be advanced or retarded in respect to the shaft by the oscillation of the member 14*, the latter being provided with a handle 41 for the purpose. A complete device in which this form is or may be incorporated is shown in my co-pending application Serial No. 199,242, filed October 30th, 1917. i

In F ig. 9, I have shown another form, using the annular band member 14" and its projections 15". In this construction, the rotatable member 40 has relatively movable contact members 17 and 18, the latter being carried by a spring leaf 22 of an oscillatory member 27. The latter has an oscillating nose or projection 43 for successive engagement with the projections 15", the movement when engaging with said projections being against the action of a curved band spring 44. The latter has one end anchored on a lug 45 which latter also serves as an abutment for one end of the member 27. Said member is provided to swing about a pin 46 as a center and may be held down on said pin by a leaf spring 47 pivoted on a stud 48. Upon swinging the member 47 to one side, the member 27 may be lifted off its pivotal support. I

It will lie obvious that other devices might be constructed to embody my invention.

Having thus ddsci'ibed my invention, what I clailn as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a contact device, the combination of a pair of relatively movable contacts, a rotary member, and an oscillatory member adapted to be moved in one direction by said rotary member and to effect relative movementof said contacts during movement in the opposite direction past normal position. 2. In a contact device, the combination of a pair of relatively movable contacts, a rotary member, an oscillatory member and a air of opposed resilient members normally liolding said oscillatory member in a predetermined position, said rotary member serving to swing said oscillatory member in one direction. against one of said resilient members and said last mentioned-resilient member serving to return said oscillatory memher past normal position to effect engage-- ment of the contacts.

In a contact device, the combination of a Weighted oscillatory member, means for swinging said member in one direction, a resillent stop in the path of movement and serving to canse'a rebound of said oscillatory member in the opposite direction, and a movable contact member actuated by said first mentioned member during the portion of said rebound past normal position.

moving said member in one direction from said normal position, a resilient stop for limiting said movement and effecting a rebound of said member past normal position, and a circuit closer operated by said rebound movement past normal.

6. In a contact device, the combination of a pivoted member normally occupying a pre determined position and movable in either of two opposed directions from said normal position, a rotary member for intermittently swinging said member in one direction from said normal position, a resilient stop for limiting said movement and effecting a re-- bound of said member past normal position, and a circuit closeroperated by said rebound movement past normal.

7. A contact device, including a weight normally occupying a predetermined posi tion and movable in either of two opposed directions from said normal position, resilient members upon opposite sides of said weight and separately acting upon said weight only upon the movement of the latter from normal position, means for intermittently forcing said member in one direction, and a circuit closer operated by said member upon a movement of said weight past normal in the opposite direction.

8. A contact device, including a pivoted weight normally occupying a predetermined position and movable in either direction from said position, means for intermittently swinging said weight in one direction, and a pair of contacts operated upon the swinging of said weight in the opposite direction.

9. A contact device, including a pivotedresilient member to effect a closing of the weight normally occupying a predetermined position and movable in either direction from said position, means for intermittently swinging said weight in one direction, and a pair of contacts operated upon the swinging of said weight in the opposite direction past normal position.

10. In combination, a rotary member having a pluralit dial position and having a swinging end in the path of said projections and movable to permit rotation of said rotary member in either direction, a resilient stop at one side of said member, and a leaf spring carrying a circuit closing contact upon the other side of said member.

11. In combination, a pair of relatively movable contacts, a vibratory member, a shaft, and an annular series ofprojections for successive engagement with said vibra tory member to move the latter in one direction, resilient means resisting said movement and serving to swing said vibratory member in the reverse direction past normal position to, effect the relative movement of said contacts andthe making and" breaking of an electric circuit.

12. In combination, a pair of relatively movable contacts, a vibratory member, a shaft, and an annularseries of projections for successive engagement with said vibratory member to move-the latter in one direction, resilient means resisting-said movement and serving to swing said vibratory member in the reverse direction past normal position to effect therelative movement of said contacts and the making and breaking of an electric circuit, the length of time during which said contacts are together being proportional. to the speed of rotation of said shaft and the resulting amount of movement of said vibratory member past normal against the resistance of its resilient portion.

13. In combination, a rotary member, a substantially radially disposed pivoted member adapted to be swung in one direction upon the rotation of said rotary member, means for causing a, rebound thereof in the opposite direction, a leaf spring adjacent to said pivoted member and adapted to be moved with the latter during said rebound, a contact, and a second contact having lost motion connections with said leaf and moved to closed position by the movement of said leaf with said pivoted member.

14.. Iii an ignition apparatus for internal combustion engines, a fixed contact, a movable contact, a resilient member having lost motion connections with said movable contact and normally holding said contacts apart, a pivoted weight, and means for swmgmg said weight against and with said of projections, a pivoted member eXten mg approximately in a racontacts.

15. In an ignition apparatus for internal combustion engines, a fixed contact, a movable contact, a resilient member having lost motion connections with one of said con tacts and normally holding them apart, a pivoted weight, and means for applying a force increasing with increases in engine speed to swing said weight against said resilient member to increasing distances to ofthe swinging movement may vary the extent of movement of said weight and resilient member and vary the time interval of closed position of said contacts.

' 17. In an ignition apparatus for internal combustion engines, a fixed contact, a movable contact, a pivoted weight, resilient means between said weight and Said movable contact, and. means for swinging said weight to varying distances toward said movable contact to efl'ecta closing of the contacts and the retention of them-in closed position. for varying time intervals.

18. In an ignition apparatus for internal combustion engines, a fixed contact, a movable contact, a pivoted weight, resilient means between said weight and said movable contact, and means including a rotary engine-driven member for swin ing said weight and effecting a closing of the contacts, said rotary member operating to increase the force imparted to said weight" upon increase in engine speed and said increase in force resulting in increased extent of movement and increased time interval of closed contacts.

19. In an ignition system for internal combustion engines, a pair of relatively movable contacts, a. rotatable engine-driven member, a member operatedby the latter and movable through distances automatically inthe latter through distances increasing or decreasing with increase ordecrea se of engine speed, g1 nd connections between said second mentioned member and oneef said contacts fobefi'ecting a closing of the contacts during a portion of each compiete-oscillation of said second mentioned member and for time internals increasing with increased range (if nigvement of said second mentioned member.

Signed at New York, in the eounty of New Yprk, and Stateof New York this 5th day ef-November A. D. 191.7.

JOSEPH LEHMAN. 

